Froggy wrote:then we lost to boston in 4 games largely in part due to the fact that the 2 best players in the world and one of the best d men in the world did jack squat. not sure how you game plan around that. I don't care what 4th liners he trots out, or what game plan he puts into effect... when our best players, specifically Crosby, Malkin, and Letang are not active on the score sheet for an entire playoff series, we lose. And since we apparently won all throughout the regular season and first 2 rounds of the playoffs DESPITE an inept coach, shouldn't they have been able to follow suit against boston?

going forward with how this team is structured, we NEED out top players... specifically THOSE THREE PLAYERS to be out best players night in and night out. No coach in the world... i don't care if he's scotty bowman circa 1977... will win if they generate nothing for an entire series.

we're going to continue to see sid taken down to jack squat and malkin made to look somewhat ordinary against well coached teams in the playoffs. this boston series wasn't the first time it's happened. we need to find a way to elevate the bottom of our lineup. bylsma has generally had turd ferguson to work with as far as prospects go, but he also hasn't done anything to show that he can get the most out of his callups. he's a question mark in this regard. but not a failure.

slappybrown wrote:Letang "can't run the PP" is really something. No doubt he can improve his decision making but come on.

You can't possibly compare the way Gonchar and Letang run the PP. Letang seems like the complimentary guy who can come in and look for a surprise opening, but a player like Gonchar is much better at distributing the puck and placing shots on the net.

slappybrown wrote:Letang "can't run the PP" is really something. No doubt he can improve his decision making but come on.

You can't possibly compare the way Gonchar and Letang run the PP. Letang seems like the complimentary guy who can come in and look for a surprise opening, but a player like Gonchar is much better at distributing the puck and placing shots on the net.

Not being as good as Gonchar at running the PP /=/ "can't run the PP."

He's not great, but he's not awful at it. Its certainly one of the few areas offensively that he could improve on, but that one seems more to be one that improves primarily with time and experience. Which is why a 38-year old Gonchar keeps getting 5mm a year.

Just like his last contract when it was signed...its a steep price at the time of signing. Hopefully his game takes the next step like he did early on in the last contract and it becomes a bargain as the cap goes up again. It would not surprise me if by 2015, he's outside of the top 5 in defencemen AAV.

Idoit40fans wrote:Just like his last contract when it was signed...its a steep price at the time of signing. Hopefully his game takes the next step like he did early on in the last contract and it becomes a bargain as the cap goes up again. It would not surprise me if by 2015, he's outside of the top 5 in defencemen AAV.

Letang has so much potential to become a top-tier DEFENSIVE defenseman to complement his offensive skills. He's not huge but he's extremely tough and fast. He has to realize that the points will come naturally for him and to put an emphasis on defense.

Unfortunately the last memories we have of his play are less than pleasant. If Letang had been injured and missed the playoffs but was signed to this deal due to his regular season play no one would be all that upset.

slappybrown wrote:Letang "can't run the PP" is really something. No doubt he can improve his decision making but come on.

You can't possibly compare the way Gonchar and Letang run the PP. Letang seems like the complimentary guy who can come in and look for a surprise opening, but a player like Gonchar is much better at distributing the puck and placing shots on the net.

Not being as good as Gonchar at running the PP /=/ "can't run the PP."

He's not great, but he's not awful at it. Its certainly one of the few areas offensively that he could improve on, but that one seems more to be one that improves primarily with time and experience. Which is why a 38-year old Gonchar keeps getting 5mm a year.

I just wish he didn't have to stop the puck to shoot it. One timers are a PP QB's bread and butter and he's terrible at them.

I got no problem with the organization paying big bucks to talented, deserving players. However, this isn't justified for Letang. I can hear it now, "Oh Kris, you're a helluva guy for most of the year, who cares if you lose your head (sounds like Fleury) when we really need you. Tell you what, we're all about making you feel good. Sure, we'll pay whatever you want. You're one of us"! Falls right into the PC world we're living in. "Everyone's a winner". "Everyone gets a trophy". "No Tommy, you're not fat, just big boned. Have another Twinkie". Stop it. Ain't no way your #1 or #2 (honestly, he's no better than a #3) D man craps the bed when you need him most and a month later you give into his rediculous demands for a new contract. Shame on Ray-Ray (again). These boys dissapointedly exit the playoffs once again and the're rewarded with free candy. Can't be Disco's fault (who, BTW couldn't manage a McDonalds in Po-dunk, USA) though. He's been extended. Whoever coined this outfit as the 'Country Club' hit the nail on the head. I'm tired of hearing about "market value" and what other teams would pay for this guy or that guy. Fact is, if I did my job like he did his, I'd be out on my arse. Ain't you supposed to bring your "A" game every dang night regardless of the size of your paycheck? Doesn't seem to happen much with this group (although there are exceptions; and one of 'em's in Minnesota!). Please help me up. I just fell off my soapbox. But wooooooooooeeeeee! Do I feel better!!!

BuckintheLou wrote:I got no problem with the organization paying big bucks to talented, deserving players. However, this isn't justified for Letang. I can hear it now, "Oh Kris, you're a helluva guy for most of the year, who cares if you lose your head (sounds like Fleury) when we really need you. Tell you what, we're all about making you feel good. Sure, we'll pay whatever you want. You're one of us"! Falls right into the PC world we're living in. "Everyone's a winner". "Everyone gets a trophy". "No Tommy, you're not fat, just big boned. Have another Twinkie". Stop it. Ain't no way your #1 or #2 (honestly, he's no better than a #3) D man craps the bed when you need him most and a month later you give into his rediculous demands for a new contract. Shame on Ray-Ray (again). These boys dissapointedly exit the playoffs once again and the're rewarded with free candy. Can't be Disco's fault (who, BTW couldn't manage a McDonalds in Po-dunk, USA) though. He's been extended. Whoever coined this outfit as the 'Country Club' hit the nail on the head. I'm tired of hearing about "market value" and what other teams would pay for this guy or that guy. Fact is, if I did my job like he did his, I'd be out on my arse. Ain't you supposed to bring your "A" game every dang night regardless of the size of your paycheck? Doesn't seem to happen much with this group (although there are exceptions; and one of 'em's in Minnesota!). Please help me up. I just fell off my soapbox. But wooooooooooeeeeee! Do I feel better!!!

BuckintheLou wrote:I got no problem with the organization paying big bucks to talented, deserving players. However, this isn't justified for Letang. I can hear it now, "Oh Kris, you're a helluva guy for most of the year, who cares if you lose your head (sounds like Fleury) when we really need you. Tell you what, we're all about making you feel good. Sure, we'll pay whatever you want. You're one of us"! Falls right into the PC world we're living in. "Everyone's a winner". "Everyone gets a trophy". "No Tommy, you're not fat, just big boned. Have another Twinkie". Stop it. Ain't no way your #1 or #2 (honestly, he's no better than a #3) D man craps the bed when you need him most and a month later you give into his rediculous demands for a new contract. Shame on Ray-Ray (again). These boys dissapointedly exit the playoffs once again and the're rewarded with free candy. Can't be Disco's fault (who, BTW couldn't manage a McDonalds in Po-dunk, USA) though. He's been extended. Whoever coined this outfit as the 'Country Club' hit the nail on the head. I'm tired of hearing about "market value" and what other teams would pay for this guy or that guy. Fact is, if I did my job like he did his, I'd be out on my arse. Ain't you supposed to bring your "A" game every dang night regardless of the size of your paycheck? Doesn't seem to happen much with this group (although there are exceptions; and one of 'em's in Minnesota!). Please help me up. I just fell off my soapbox. But wooooooooooeeeeee! Do I feel better!!!

The beauty is there is not a no trade clause... So if he doesn't live up to this contract or if we feel the pinch of this contract we can trade him and not only unload the money owed to him but get some assets in return.